How do I get a temple recommend if I can’t afford to pay tithing?

Dear Gramps,

My Bishop told me that I cannot get a Temple recommend because I cannot tithe. I am a single parent of three children and work very hard to support my family. We live from paycheck to paycheck. I don’t understand why I cannot get my recommend.

Respectfully,

Kathleen, from South Dakota

Dear Kathleen,

It really doesn’t take money to pay tithing; it takes faith. The Lord himself has made a promise to those who pay their tithing–

Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it (Malachi 3:10).

Do you think that the Lord would ever make a promise and not fulfil it? Have you ever thought that perhaps the reason that you are struggling so much is because you don’t pay your tithing? If you are keeping all the commandments and attending your meetings regularly, including the payment of tithing, I’m sure that the bishop of your Ward would see to it that you and your family would not go without the necessities of life. This is only one of the avenues through which the Lord fulfills his promise to the faithful.

My recommendation would be that you sit down with your bishop, and lay before him all your financial matters-income, expenses, debts and savings-tell him that you intend to pay a full tithing from now on out, and ask for his recommendation on how you should handle your finances with a 10% decrease in your gross income. The Lord will bless you for exercising sufficient faith in him to be obedient to the laws of the gospel, especially when it represents a significant sacrifice on your part.

Gramps